United Adds Flights to College Football Playoff Games

Updated: May 19, 2026, 10:09am CDT

Edited by:

Jump to Section

Table of Contents

Fly United to Your College Football Game This Season
Final Thoughts

We may be compensated when you click on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened from one or more of our advertising partners. Terms apply to the offers below. See our Advertising Policy for more about our partners, how we make money, and our rating methodology. Opinions and recommendations are ours alone.

Your team travels; why don’t you? As it’s done for the past few years, United Airlines added additional flights to shuttle fans to some of the key college football games this season. Now, it’s arranging its network for the first round of the expanded 12-team College Football Playoffs.

Here’s a look at United’s new routes to serve these on-campus games for the first phase of the playoffs.

Fly United to Your College Football Game This Season

Given the regional location of many of the games, the new routes will mean more United Airlines flights to smaller airports like State College, Pennsylvania (SCE) and South Bend, Indiana (SBN).

Better still, even if you’re not a football fan, you can still take advantage of improved regional connectivity these next few weeks.

The Chicago-based airline’s additional nonstop flights will facilitate travel to all 4 games of this round of the playoffs. Departures will run on Fridays, with return flights on Sundays. The sole exception is the Indiana at Notre Game. This will have outbound flights on both Thursday and Friday (December 19 and 20) with return flights on Saturday (December 21, 2024).

SCROLL FOR MORE

Matchup	Route	Flight Date
Indiana @ Notre Dame on December 20	Chicago (ORD) and Newark (EWR) to South Bend, Indiana (SBN)	December 19
	Newark (EWR) to South Bend, Indiana (SBN)	December 20
	South Bend, Indiana (SBN) to Chicago (ORD) and Newark (EWR)	December 21
SMU @ Penn State on December 21	Chicago (ORD), Washington, D.C. (IAD), and Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) to State College, Pennsylvania (SCE)	December 20
SMU @ Penn State on December 21	State College, Pennsylvania (SCE) to Chicago (ORD), Washington, D.C. (IAD), and Dallas Fort Worth (DFW)	December 22
Tennessee @ Ohio State on December 21	Knoxville, Tennessee (TYS) to Columbus, Ohio (CMH)	December 20
Tennessee @ Ohio State on December 21	Columbus, Ohio (CMH) to Knoxville, Tennessee (TYS)	December 22
Clemson @ Texas on December 21	Greenville, South Carolina (GSP) to Austin, Texas (AUS)	December 20
Clemson @ Texas on December 21	Austin, Texas (AUS) to Greenville, South Carolina (GSP)	December 22

You can buy your tickets now at the United.com website or via the United mobile app.

Hot Tip:

Learn how to earn and redeem United MileagePlus miles on flights with United!

Final Thoughts

In what’s becoming an annual tradition, United has added more flights to help facilitate travel to college football games. And now that the playoffs are here, we frankly aren’t surprised that the carrier is running these routes.

Let’s go, (enter your mascot here)!